Prestonsburg hillside blaze claims 30 acres

PRESTONSBURG — A few local residents were keeping an eye on the hillsides this past weekend, after a forest fire erupted in Prestonsburg.

According to officials with the Prestonsburg Fire Department, forestry officials were on scene Saturday afternoon after a fire spread into the nearby hills.

While forestry officials tried to contain the blaze, Prestonsburg Fire Department set up in different points throughout the city where homes were being threatened by the flames. Floyd County Emergency and Rescue Squad was also called out to help support and backup the fire department.

According to the Kentucky Division of Forestry officials, the fire encompassed 30 acres of wooded hillside. “One of the things that contribute to that, was that there were a whole lot of pines with beetle rot in that area, from black beetles. So, they were dried already and ready to burn,” said Luke Saunier, Fire Chief with Division of Forestry. “That’s something we deal with everywhere.”

The official cause of the fire was listed as a debris burning, though officials say no one was present when crews responded. Thus far no one has been charged, and the fire is still under investigation.